Wisconsin Coronavirus Cases Climb To 2,440; 77 Deaths

MILWAUKEE, WI — Nearly 2,500 cases of the new coronavirus have been confirmed in Wisconsin and 77 people have died due to the illness as of Monday afternoon, according to the state department of health.

Department of Health Services Secretary Andrea Palm said Monday's reported fatalities include a Dane County man in his 90s and six people in Milwaukee County: a man in his 50s, another in his 80s and one in his 90s and a woman in her 70s. Racine County reported a man in his 70s died from the virus and Winnebago County officials reported a man in his 60s died from the virus.

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"We expect more cases, we expect more death, we expect more tragedies. There's not a sufficiently safe way to facilitate in-person voting tomorrow," Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers said in a conference call with reporters Monday afternoon, speaking about the April 7 presidential primary and statewide general election.

Governor Orders Election Delay

According to the executive order issued Monday, Evers suspended Tuesday's in-person election vote until June 9, "unless the Legislature passes and the Governor approves a different date for in-person voting."

The move comes just days after Evers said moving the election was a legal impossibility. "I can't move this election or change it on my own. My hands are tied. I even publicly called [the legislature] to act. They are publicly unwilling to change." Evers said Friday in a conference call with reporters.

Yet on Monday, Evers said moving the election was within his sole power.

"Certainly the circumstances have changed," Evers said when a reporter asked whether this order was against the law. Evers cited the number of increased COVID-19 cases in the state, and the dramatic decrease in the number of polling places that would have been open on April 7 as information that factored into his decision. Evers said he believed this order was in his authority to make on Monday.

Evers, a Democrat, has been sparring with the Republican-controlled state Legislature for weeks over how to conduct the election. Within minutes of learning of Monday's executive order, GOP leaders fumed.

"We are immediately challenging this executive order in the Wisconsin State Supreme Court," Assembly Speaker Robin Vos said in a joint statement with state Sen. Scott Fitzgerald. "The clerks of this state should stand ready to proceed with the election. The governor's executive order is clearly an unconstitutional overreach."

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